Secrets of Silence
by Isabelle8888
Summary: Alec comes to town in search of the mother of his child, he finds a lot more then he bargained for when everyone’s lives are put in danger. Max thought life couldn’t get worse, she was wrong. MA
1. New guy

**Background facts:** No Ben in this story for the simple fact Max can't know his face, loved Ben's crazy ass to death though. And it follows most of the show just not the Alec parts, yes Max and Logan all that crap is true, virus and all, she was recaptured and Manticore is gone. As you read how Alec and what happened, pretty much my AU version of things gets explained.

Summary: Alec comes to town in search of the mother of his child, he finds a lot more then he bargained for when everyone's lives are put in danger. Max thought life couldn't get worse, she was wrong. When an annoying stranger enters her life she soon learns it wasn't by accident.

_**Chapter 1**_

Max felt herself dragging that morning after helping Logan out the night before with a job to retrieve information on a case. Logan, her mind thought, she was confused about them lately. They had been friends since oddly enough she broke into his apartment and he uncovered her secret but lately it was more then friendship, it started more that night she was recaptured and taken back to hell.

Because of a virus targeted only to his DNA, they couldn't touch let alone be a couple but it was a subject neither talked much of. They were both too chicken to bring up the subject and figure out where they stood, Max knew it wasn't something she wanted to do.

"Hey girl." She greeted her best friend/roommate as she sat down on one of the benches between the rows of lockers.

"Hey boo, I didn't hear you come in last night. How'd it go?" Original Cindy asked as she shut her locker.

"Long, we were stuck waiting for hours but Logan got what he needed." Max explained, Cindy was the only person that knew everything about her life, the transgenic Manticore secrets, and her confusion about Logan. "What's going on over there?" she asked nudging her head toward the reception stand where a group of employees stood.

"Welcoming the new guy, Normal hired him this morning after he drooled over himself. Apparently he's a fan of his work." OC laughed.

"His work?"

"Some cage fighter." She turned around. "Look at Normal, the boy is in love."

Snapping out of his daze, Normal the manger of Jam Pony began handing out packages and demanding everyone get to work. "Late again, don't think I didn't notice when you came in missy." He said to Max.

She sighed. "A few minutes, traffic was a bitch; sue me." She held out her hand for the package and caught the new guy looking at her but she began to stare at him as well. Something about him struck her as knowing; familiar. She stuffed the packages in her bag and walked away.

"You ok?" Original Cindy asked when they caught up outside.

"Yeah it's just…I don't know." Max shook her head and wrote it off as just one of those unexplainable moments in life. She had too much on her plate to worry about something that most likely meant nothing in the long run, or so she wanted to believe.

~*~

It was her, he knew it was her by her eyes, they were his daughter's eyes. All the months of looking and research finally paid off. Finally after so many disappointments, the point he was ready to give up, there she was.

As he rode the streets to his first delivery she clouded his mind. She looked nothing like her thought, she was more beautiful then he could've imagined but he had been sure of her eyes, there was no mistaking that.

"What do I do now?" he asked himself with a sigh. He risked everything to get to this moment and now that it was finally a reality he didn't know how he should proceed.

He knew one thing for sure, he had to keep Ava safe from the dangers that would always try and find them but also any new ones that rose even if that meant her own mother. He had to learn about her first and find out the type of woman she was.

He knocked on the door. "Jam Pony messenger."

~*~

"Thanks." Max said as she left another house. She agreed to meet Cindy back at Jam Pony to have lunch together, she arrived first. "Hey Sketchy."

"Hey Max, I have a question for you being on the female species. There's this girl and she's taking 'playing hard to get' to a whole new level. But I think she likes me and I know there's not another guy." He explained.

"How do you know?" Max questioned as she crossed her arms.

Sketchy shifted his feet. "Well I might've followed her."

"Stalking is not a way to a girl's heart."

Sketchy turned around at the sound of his voice. "Alec my man hey." He greeted with a nervous chuckle. "Oh this is Max, Max, Alec."

"Hey. We're sort of in a private conversation." Max tightly said, unsure where the emotion came from.

"No," Sketchy jumped in. "I could use the help, what do you think man?"

"Talk to her, tell her you don't like games and see where you stand. Girls like honesty and if she's not interested then cut your losses and move on without wasting time on a maybe girl."

Sketchy nodded. "Thanks man. Hey we're heading out to lunch, wanna join us?" he asked placing an encouraging hand on Alec's shoulder. Oblivious to Max's displease.

"Not this time man, I have a date."

"Ah you lucky dog you."

Alec smiled walking away. "You have no idea."

-

Isabelle A.


	2. Stranger

AN: Also I'm changing some facts like how long Max was at Manticore to fit the story idea, again as you read it'll all explain it's self in due time.

_**Secrets of Silence**_

_**Chapter two**_

"Daddy!" The little three year old girl yelled as she jumped into her father's strong arms. "How was work?" she had hoped he liked the job and wouldn't go back to the fighting ring for money. She knew he could handle it but she still didn't like it.

Alec smiled at the hope laced along her dark brown eyes. "It was perfect." He answered causing her to smile as well. "But I have to go back, this is just break time." he set her down on the floor then hand and hand they went to the kitchen for lunch.

~*~

After a page from Logan Max quickly finished her lunch and rushed over to his place. He had called at a good time, this time she needed his help instead of just the other way around. "Hey." She said with a small wave of her hand.

"Hey. I thought you'd want to know there have been some police reports about mutants being seen. You might want to look into it." Logan explained jumping right into why he called as he gathered the reports he spoke of. As she took them careful not to touch him he noticed her expression. "What's wrong?"

Max sat down on the armrest of one of the near by chairs. "There's this guy." She stated unsure why it had become such a big deal but it bugged her all day, she needed to do something.

Logan felt a surge of anger that she wanted to talk to him about another guy, that there was even another guy. "What about him?"

"I'm not sure but I think he's from Manticore."

Logan let out a breath he had been holding. There was nothing to worry about, Max hated everything Manticore. He looked at her again noticing her serious expression. "Does he have a barcode, what makes you think he's a transgenic?"

Max was silent and annoyed over the fact she couldn't shake the feeling about him and his image, the way he had looked at her. "The way he carried himself and his distant presence, he just reminded me of what Manticore made us into."

"That's a lot to notice."

Max sharply looked up and met his eyes. "There's things people can never forget, when it comes to Manticore training it was my hell. I pick up on it." Something about his comment bothered her. He made it sound like she was wrong somehow to feel the way she had.

Logan sighed and knew when to back up. "If you can get a name or address on him I'll see if there's anything that could help."

~*~

The next couple of days around Alec she decided it didn't matter, what he was or wasn't didn't change her life one bit. But she still wanted to know what Logan found out from the address she swiped from the Jam Pony employee file. It was just the way she was built, she picked up on things, and she tried to convince herself of that as she watched Alec talking to one of the female employees.

He was a ladies man but at the same time he turned down numerous offers, no one really saw him outside of Jam Pony. Sketchy was still trying to convince him to join everyone at Crash; he was in desperate need of a male friend. But Alec always answered there was somewhere else he had to be.

"Take a picture it lasts longer."

She met his hazel eyes as he walked toward her by the lockers. He was a cocky smart ass, she added to her list of realizations about the stranger. "Don't flatter yourself; you just happen to be standing where I was staring." Not the best lie, she grimly thought.

"That's what they all say."

She crossed her arms and watched as he opened his locker which was right behind hers. She looked at his neck but again couldn't see because of the jacket's collar which he always wore. Like clock work he was gone as soon as his shift ended. Max sighed and decided she needed a life, she spent too much time trying to figure this stranger out. She slammed her own locker shut and headed home.

~*~

Alec laid back on his bed as Ava played in the living room with Shane, an X-6 he helped escape from the Manticore fire. Since then they stuck together and Ava didn't have to be alone when he was at work.

Since she found out what parents are and she had a father that loved her Ava wondered about her mother. Alec wondered as well, X-5 452, Max; he knew facts from a file he was never supposed to see. The same way he was never supposed to find out about Ava. His hands clenched at his sides as he thought of all the lies and tricks Manticore pulled.

His mood lifted when Ava jumped on his bed. "Hey Peach what's up?" he asked using her nickname.

"Daddy can we go out for a walk?" Since she saw the free world she couldn't get enough. Staying in one spot too long upset her leaving her feeling confined the way she use to be.

"Sure Peach let's go."

~*~

Max sat at the bar counter at Crash and watched her friends playing pool. She smiled at the freedom she felt, it was those moments she missed the most when she was stuck at Manticore again. Years of her life just taken away but she was grateful the loved ones in her life never let go and welcomed her back with open arms.

The beeping sounds of her pager pulled her out of her thoughts. She headed to the bar's payphone and called him back. "Hey what's shaking?"

"I have some information on that guy you wanted me to check into."

-

Isabelle A.


	3. Finders keepers

_**Secrets of Silence**_

_**Chapter 3**_

Max arrived at Logan's and found him cooking dinner when she stepped into the kitchen then noticed the table was nicely set. She wanted a chance alone with him to discuss their relationship or lack of, but she wasn't happy he used when she asked for his help to get her there so quick. "Logan." She said taking his attention off the stove. "What's all this?"

"Since you were already coming I decided why not have dinner as well?"

Max softly smiled relieved that he hadn't been trying to trick her. "What did you find out?"

"Nothing much, there's no type of record on him. I checked with the fighting arena, he started there seven months ago but quit recently." Logan explained as he moved around the kitchen and tended to the meal.

Max frowned, he wasn't kidding when he said it wasn't much. "Seven months, that's around the same time Manticore went down. It can't be a condescendence." She expressed.

"There's nothing more we can do, let's focus on us."

~*~

After their walk it was late and Ava was tired enough to fall asleep as soon as she reached the bed. Alec left her alone and joined Shane on the sofa as she stared at the TV looking for mindless entertainment. "Hey." She said when she noticed his presence.

"Hey, Peach is asleep and it's still pretty early and there's something I want to take care of. If she wakes up just think of something and call me, I'll be back soon." Alec explained as he grabbed his jacket and neared the door.

The younger transgenic nodded as he left. She rose from the sofa and went to the door putting each lock in place as she was taught to do; Ava had to be protected as much as possible.

~*~

Alec hated to lie to his family, he considered Shane like a little sister and he fully trusted her with his daughter's life. Ava, he knew how she hated danger, if she learned the truth of his nightly whereabouts she wouldn't be pleased. She wasn't the normal three year old, her mind was very developed and she had thoughts and feelings just as strong with no problem on voicing them.

"She gets that from here mother." He mumbled as his mind drifted to Max. The more he observed her at work the more he saw of her in Ava. Max, she was a handful, a temper to match her straight forward ways. They didn't get along in the short moments they saw of each other, she just seemed to push all his buttons.

But that wasn't enough for him to make the choice weather or not she should know about Ava. He didn't care if she disliked him, it mattered how she would react and treat Ava. But he didn't know enough about her and was completely lost on how to find out.

He walked the dark shadows and realized he wasn't alone anymore. Speaking of the devil, he thought as the dark eyed woman walked toward him. He hadn't noticed her soon enough to hide and now he had to deal. "What are you doing around here?" she tightly asked.

Was she always so serious, he wondered. As he met her eyes he saw she knew something, as if she knew he shouldn't be there. "How do you know I don't live around here?"

Max crossed her arms. "No one working at Jam Pony could afford a place around here."

Alec placed his hands in his pockets, both of them in interrogation mode. "Then what are you doing here?"

Max stopped herself from snapping since she had asked the same thing of him, it wasn't fair to lash out though she was itching to. "Visiting a friend."

"Ah, the boyfriend." Alec said with a smirk in place. "I heard you and OC talking at Jam Pony, Logan right?" he seemed very carefree as he spoke but inside he wasn't happy to know she had an ordinary in her life, it was a high risk he had to consider.

"That's none of your business. What are you doing here?" she asked again remembering he dodged the question earlier, he was good at that.

"That's none of your business." Alec said using her words against her. He smiled before walking away.

~*~

Max watched him leave with an urge to stop him but that would only cause questions she couldn't answer. She took the last few steps to her bike and hopped on quickly riding away.

The next day Max jumped at the chance to grab the package Normal listed before giving it any thought causing the others to give her a questioning look. She shrugged it off and took the package. The delivery was only a few blocks from the address listed in Alec's file.

Max decided why not mix a little breaking and entering into her work day. She walked down the street after making the delivery and spotted two kids, one looked about five and the other seven, they were arguing.

"I'm going to kill you if you don't give it back!"

"Finders keepers!"

Max watched the little girl suddenly charge at the other girl at full speed, Manticore speed. She quickly reacted, "Whoa!" she said grabbing the little girl before her fist could touch the older girl. "Run." Max told the frightened older girl.

"That's unfair, she stole my toy, my daddy got it yesterday. I want it back!" She yelled trying to free herself from Max's grasp.

"You shouldn't go after people like that in public, it isn't safe. Calm down, we'll get your toy back ok? First I want to talk to you." Max set the girl down on her feet when she stopped fighting. "You're from Manticore?" The little girl tensed up and turned pale white. "It's ok, so am I." she softly said to calm her nerves as she showed her, her barcode. "Can I see yours?"

She turned around and flashed the older woman her neck. "I shouldn't be out but stupid Gwen stole my toy in the hall, I chased her out here."

Max smiled. "You're a little thunder cat, how old are you?"

"Three." The little girl suddenly looked up and ran. "Daddy!" she yelled jumped into his arms.

Max rose from her crouching position on the street and turned around. "Alec."

-

Isabelle A.


	4. Manticore's Plan

_**Chapter 4**_

Alec looked away from Max's intense stare. "Ava, where's Shane?"

"It's not her fault, she told me to stay put, I was just in the hall but Gwen stole my toy and I went after her. Shane only left for a second to get some food." Ava explained.

Alec nodded; he couldn't get mad at her when she looked at him with her big brown eyes so innocently. "It's ok but you shouldn't be out here alone talking to strangers."

"It's ok, she's Manticore too." Ava happily told her father. Since the escape she never saw anyone of her kind except Alec and Shane. But there was something more about the woman watching them, she knew it.

"Why don't you go inside and wait for Shane then give her a hard time for me, ok?" Alec said lowering her to the ground.

"Ok." Ava said running off.

Alec looked at the woman before him, unsure how he was going to handle the situation. "So Maxie what brings you by?" he placed his hands in his pocket.

Max slowly walked around him and moved the collar of his jacket. "I knew it. Since when do X-5's have kids?"

"I do love this question game we play but I'm skipping it today so you answer me first."

Max sighed. "I was on a run and saw her getting ready to pound on a kid twice her size. You don't look surprised to know I'm X-5, why didn't you tell me?" she tightly asked. She was glad to know her instincts were right but also very pissed off. She didn't quite understand why yet.

"Why would I? Wanna start a little club?"

He wasn't helping her mood, Max felt anger surge though her body, all control she had slowly slipping. "You knew what I was before we met; I saw it in your eyes. The question is how and why? Where you looking for me or is all of this a freaky play of events?" her arms were tight around her chest, her mouth in a line as she waited for what smart ass comment he came up with next.

Alec diverted his attention. "Shane, nice of you to join us. Peach is upstairs, keep her there."

"I thought her name was Ava." Max said when they were alone again.

"It is, Peach is a nickname. Her cheeks turn red a lot, she looks like a peach." Alec absently explained as he focused on the apartment building unable to look at her again.

"She's your biological kid?"

"Yeah." Alec softly said. "It's not safe to talk out here, come inside." He led the way, once inside he shut the door. "The other girl is Shane, she's X-6." He explained so she'd know they could talk freely.

Max's mind began to race, Ava was too old to be born after Manticore and she had a barcode, so she knew the little girl was born there. She had been unaware Manticore was involved in a breeding program using their own instead of mixing DNA like the way she was made.

Alec sat down at the kitchen table and noticed her intense look, she was trying to figure it all out he realized. "It's only her, there was no unit. There isn't three year old transgenics running around town. Ava was an experiment, Manticore went down before they could continue and try again with others."

Max sat down at the table as well. "What kind of experiment?"

Alec was silent for a moment before making his choice on what he should and shouldn't say. "They had plans to take the two most perfect strains of DNA and create a child that would be better then anything they created before. It worked, she has no junk DNA, she doesn't get sick, her brain is more developed now then the average forty year old."

He sighed heavily before continuing. "I was in good with the guards; I wandered around at night freely. One night I went to the lower levels and found a little girl crying. We talked and she told me why she was made and what they were doing to her. The next night I broke into Renfro's office and found Ava's file. It listed the samples used to create her. X-5 494 was listed as the father, that's me. They look my sperm, the other X-5's embryo and implanted it into a surrogate."

Max was silent, she knew Manticore was sick but the things she learned today were just painful. She wouldn't allow herself to think of what they could've been doing to Ava.

Just as she thought of the little girl's innocent eyes, she joined them in the kitchen climbing on Alec's lap.

"Are you going to tell her?" Ava softly asked looking at her father.

"Tell her what Peach?"

"I saw her barcode, she's 452."

Alec felt his chest tighten as he looked into her hopeful eyes. She knew what it meant but refrained from saying more leaving the choice in his hands. Alec knew how bad she wanted to know her mother. "Yeah I'll tell her, why don't you give us a few minutes alone."

Max watched as the little girl walked away, there was a sense of familiarity to her. Max's mind drifted back to the night of the fire, how Renfro spoke of her DNA before she died. She snapped out of the memory and looked sharply at Alec. "Tell me what?"

Alec looked in her eyes; it wasn't the way he planned on telling her. He wanted more time but Ava knew the truth and saw her, he couldn't break his little girl's heart. "I did come here looking for you. I found out you worked at Jam Pony, Ava wanted me to stop fighting so I decided I'd use the job as a cover while I decided how to go about telling you or when. Ava knows her mother's destination from the files, it's you. That's what she wanted me to tell you."

Max felt all the air escape her lunges. "No, it can't be….they wouldn't---"

Alec left the table and came back less then a minute later. He laid the pieces of paper in front of her as he sat down. "You've seen her eyes Max, they're yours."

As the strong emotions rushed to her eyes, she picked up the paper which had the Manticore header. There it was in black and white, Ava's file, her parents' facts, destinations, and notes about the testing done on all of them. Testing she didn't remember. She looked up at Alec and fought to keep the tears inside.

"I never pegged you for the speechless type." Alec said trying to make light on the intense air around them. He sighed and gave up. "You don't have to decide anything now. She's safe and doesn't expect---"

"Is she happy?" Max blurted. "Or does she feel Manticore was easier then this world, made more sense or something?"

"We were going to escape anyway. You just made it easier. Thanks by the way." Alec said with a grin, he couldn't handle the serious atmosphere between them.

"What do you mean?"

"I couldn't let my kid be raised the same way we were or worse. I had to get her out and spending so much time away on missions I knew I could handle it. Raising her, being out in the world and away from Manticore." Alec explained.

"That explains it. All the missions, why I never saw you around all that time."

"I found out about Ava a week before the fire. Before that I was on a long term mission. Like the proof states, I was the best male they had. Once I was ready I spent more time on missions then back at base."

Max scoffed. "You don't have to be so cocky about it." she grabbed a hold of all her running emotions and stashed them away for later. "About Ava---"

"Like I was trying to say before, if you want to be involved in her life I won't stand in your way. But if you don't or you need time she'll understand."

"No it's---" When she looked at him it dawned on her, she had a child with this man she didn't even know. Their DNA created the beautiful girl in the other room. "I want to get to know her."

-

_**Isabelle A.**_


	5. A Solution

_**Chapter 5**_

Alec stood at the kitchen opening with his arms crossed over his chest as he watched Ava and Max together talking on the sofa. Ava showing off a picture of Max she painted while she had left her to talk with Alec in the kitchen earlier.

"It's perfect, I have a friend who paints his name is Joshua. He's from Manticore too."

"Cool." Ava exclaimed. "I have more, want to see them?"

"Sure." As the word left her mouth Ava took off running. "She's great." Max said as she noticed Alec's stare. "She's happy; you've done good with her."

"I hope. Listen there's something you should know. We'll all being hunted but Ava's their top priority. The guy running this thing is hell bent on getting her back into the government's hands." Alec explained as he pushed off the wall and neared her careful so Ava wouldn't overhear.

"You've had a few close calls." Max realized and worry set in. She wished she could've been there to help.

"Just me, nothing I couldn't handle. They haven't seen Ava but suspect she's in my care."

"Speaking of," Shane began as she joined them. "I saw a few suits while I was in town and that's what took me so long to get back."

"No one followed you?" Alec asked.

"No I was extra careful. I won't let anyone get close to Ava; she's like a sister to me." The teenage transgenic explained, she saw it all as a mission she couldn't fail. She worked best in a solider state of mind.

"Thanks for being there for her." Max spoke. She was grateful to anyone on her daughter's side.

"No problem. I'm glad she finally found you. I've never seen her so happy." Shane said as Ava came out with more drawings.

Max stayed the next few hours and had dinner with them. Afterward she put Ava to bed and waited with her until she fell asleep. She shut the room door and found Alec cleaning up in the kitchen as her beeper went off, again.

"It's gone off more then ten times just call whoever it is back. My phone's on the table." Alec spoke as he washed the dishes. He was developing a strong hate for her beeper, the ringing was began to haunt his thoughts.

Max took his advice and dialed Logan's number. "Hey."

"Hey, where've you been all day?"

"Um…it's a long story I'll explain later. What's up?" Max said looking at Alec has his back faced her. She had no idea how to explain any of it to Logan.

"You won't believe what happened. I woke up this morning and realized I was robbed. Paintings, sculptures, electronics, all gone. I didn't hear a thing." He ranted with his voice on edge. "But all my files are still here and safe."

"With all the security you have this person had to be good, hell you caught me." Max voiced. Her eyes landed on Alec again and remembered he had been there last night. "Logan I have to go, I'll call you back later." She placed the phone back down on the table then walked over beside Alec. "Would you happen to know anything about a robbery at Fogle Towers yesterday?" she leaned against the counter and eyed him looking for a sign he was guilty.

Alec continued with the dishes. "No."

"I think you're lying. In fact I think it was you."

"I'm hurt Maxie I am."

Max continued to look at him in hopes to intimidate him into confessing. Minutes passed neither of them moving before Alec spoke. "You know he has a little too much info about transgenics lying around. Not the safest thing in the world."

"I knew it!" Max punched him in the arm. "How could you?"

"Hey don't get you panties in a twist. Jam Pony doesn't pay enough to keep this place and everything else. It's going toward your daughter's welfare. Plus I was nice; I left his precious computer alone." Alec shut off the water and dried his hands.

"You're unbelievable."

"Thanks."

"It wasn't a compliment."

"I'm taking it as one." Alec called back as he sat on the sofa.

"I'm gonna go." Max said heading for the door. "I'll come back to see her."

"Thanks for sticking around as long as you did. It meant a lot to her." Alec wanted Max to know.

"It meant a lot to me." Max said leaving the apartment.

When she finally got home she found OC asleep, Max decided to try and do the same. She laid in the darkness of her room and thought of Ava. She had a daughter; the sheer thought was mind blowing.

And Alec, she found him incredibly annoying and could do without his smug grin all the time but he was a wonderful father. She would've never guessed his secret would've been so big.

The next morning after a mere two hours of sleep she met Original Cindy in the kitchen. "Hey boo where've you been? Normal was having a bitch fit when you disappeared. Alec too. He figured you corrupted his golden boy somehow." She explained getting the coffee ready to brew. "What did go down?"

"You ain't gonna believe this." Max sighed and took a seat on one of the empty chairs. "I decided to break into Alec's place to see if he had anything lying around that could tell me I was right and he was Manticore. Before I could get there I saw this tiny little girl getting ready to pound a girl twice her size. She moved at Manticore speed and I stopped her. Alec shows up and it turns out she's his daughter and they're both from Manticore."

"Damn boo."

"That's only the half of it."

Cindy noticed how her friend's expression grew very serious. "What else happened?"

"The little girl, Ava, she was created by Manticore with the two perfect strains of DNA they had. Alec found out he was the father and wanted to get her out of there. He had the files and Ava knew her mother's destination. It's me, I'm her mother." Max's voice grew soft toward the end. Saying it caused it to become more real then last night. Tears stung her eyes as she thought of all the time they missed together and the hell Ava went through alone at Manticore.

OC was shocked silent. "Whoa." She said after a few minutes. The feeling began to fade as she focused on her friend. "So you and hot boy have a little boo, she must be pretty."

Max smiled. "Beautiful, she's amazing. She looks a lot like him but with my eyes. I'm gonna go see her today before work if you wanna tag along."

"Hell yeah, I gotta met this little princess."

They left the apartment with still half hour to spare before work. When they arrived Ava was eating breakfast with Shane in the kitchen as Alec got ready for work. Max introduced OC to Ava and left the girls eating as she walked to Alec's room.

He moved around the room wearing nothing put a pair of jeans.

"I need to talk to you." Max said watching as he dug around the room for a shirt.

"So talk." Every shirt he picked up he threw behind him. "I need to wash." He mumbled. He gave up and looked at Max who still hadn't spoke. "What?"

Max remained silent as she tried to come up with the right words. She crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame before noticing his stare. "I don't want you to think I'm trying to take her away or something but I think we should come up with a plan, like a schedule." She suggested.

"You want to take her to spend time with you?" Alec asked to make sure he understood what she wanted.

"Yeah. She could spend a few nights with me a week. I have the room."

Alec ran his hand through his hair and realized he still wasn't ready. He pulled on one of the decent shirts before sitting on the bed to put on his boots. "I don't know, she's in a lot of danger."

"I'd protect her with my life. You know I can handle it."

Alec stood again once he was done. "What about your life? How would she fit in and your boyfriend, what does he think about you suddenly having a kid?" he didn't want Ava to feel out of place on top of all the dangers.

"He doesn't know and it doesn't matter. I want her in my life and I want to include you in this but she's mine too. I have a right to make choices for her." Max tightly explained.

"It's not that easy. You don't know the types of problems she has."

"Problems?"

Alec walked up to Max and pulled her inside the room, he checked the hall to make sure they were alone before shutting the door. "They succeeded and made her perfect, too perfect. There are times where it all becomes too much, all the knowledge and the training, it all comes at her and she burns out."

"Seizures." Max said with a sigh. She didn't want to think of her child suffering the way she had.

Alec noticed the knowing expression. "Family trait?"

"You could say so. Manticore evened it out my last stay there. I don't get them as much."

"She has nightmares sometimes but I think we all do. There are also times; it happens almost daily where she has to go out. The same spaces remind her of the cell they kept her in. She likes to take walks."

Max nodded, she knew it would take time and care for Ava to learn to live with Manticores tortures. She looked at Alec and saw the worry he carried. "Ok, so what do we do?"

Max wanted to be involved, that's what he had wanted for Ava. "We need a solution so she can have both her parents." He met her dark orbs. "Move in."

-

Isabelle A


	6. Yesterday

_**Chapter 6**_

"Girl what's on your mind so hard? You've been so serious since we left little boo this morning." OC pointed out as they left Jam Pony together.

"I have to make a choice; get to know Ava and give her the best life I can considering how broken the world already is and also pretty much piss Logan off? Or just leave things the way they are?" Max wasn't fond of her choices but at least for the time being they were they only ones she had.

"Follow your heart boo, you wanna be the best mama for that girl. Do what you gotta do, Logan will understand."

_**IIII**_

After work Alec and Ava worked on dinner while Shane went out. Ava climbed on one of the chairs as she asked, "Will Max come back today?"

"I don't know Peach, we have to wait and see."

"Oh."

Alec turned away from the counter and saw her frown before she covered it up when she met his face. "You know they'll be times you want her here but she can't be but she wants to be. There's a lot going on." He tried to explain.

_**IIII**_

Max walked into Logan's and realized for the first time in a very long time she was nervous. "Hey you." she took that moment to look around, a lot of things were missing. Alec really cleaned him out.

"Hey stranger. I've been trying to reach you all day."

"Battery must've died on my pager." She lied, the truth was she had no idea what to say and decided it was best to just avoid him until she came to a realization. "We need to talk, it's important."

Logan turned away from his computer and put his focus on her. "What is it?"

Max sighed, she wasn't sure there was a right way to explain yesterday. "You know that guy I asked you to look into, Alec?"

Logan nodded, he guessed it wasn't going to be pleasant whatever she needed to tell him. "Yeah?"

"It turns out I was right; he is from Manticore, X-5 like me. But there's a lot more to it then that, he has a little girl. She was created by Manticore using the most perfect compatible strains of DNA they had. She's been with him since the fire but even before that he made plans to escape with her." Knowing the risks he was willing to take for Ava changed Max's point of view on him. He wasn't just some selfish playboy.

Logan's mind began to piece her words together. "What does that have to do with you Max?"

She met his eyes and wished she could avoid hurting him but there was no changing the truth. "She's mine too; she was created from the both of us. I didn't find out until yesterday, by mistake she was getting ready to fight with some kid." Max smiled, she realized Ava had a short tempter as well.

"Was he ever going to tell you?"

"He was waiting for the right time to make sure I wouldn't be bad for her. He worries a lot, she's a special girl." Max held no anger or resentment toward Alec for not telling her sooner. If the positions were reversed she would've done the same thing.

"All this time he didn't say anything, I don't think you should trust him."

"It's not about him, it's about Ava; she's my daughter. It's not the way I imagined having children, if ever with all the risks and danger but she's here and I'm going to be involved in her life."

_**IIII**_

Alec sat on the sofa with his feet propped up on the coffee table. He mindlessly used the remote to flip though the channels. He was bored and that was dangerous for him because memories he fought so hard to control would resurface. He ran his hand though his hair and sighed. With the recent events he kept remembering when he found Ava's file, how he wanted to kill Renfro with his bare hands.

A soft knock on the door pulled him away from the memory. He turned off the TV and rose to open the door, to find Max on the other side. "Ava's asleep." He said rather then some sarcastic welcome he had in mind.

"I know but I want to be here when she wakes up."

"Does that mean---"

"I'm moving in."

-

Isabelle A.


	7. Starts with a bet

_**Chapter 7**_

"Does he always take this long in the shower?" Max asked as she and Ava stood outside the bathroom waiting to get in that morning.

"Yeah."

Finally the door opened steam escaped the room as Alec looked at Max and Ava leaning against the opposite wall. Their arms were crossed and they both wore an annoyed expression. "Max and mini-Max, that's just scary." He said walking away to his room.

That morning Max opted to help Ava take a bath and get ready before doing the same. And even after all that time Alec was still in his room getting ready. Worse then any girl, Max thought as she and Ava joined Shane at the table.

Alec joined them five minutes later heading straight to the coffee pot only to find it empty. He turned and narrowed his eyes at Max.

She bit her lip to keep from laughing, "You take long showers and I drink coffee. Next time don't be such a bathroom hog." She blankly said as she flipped though the newspaper.

Alec grinned; Max had no idea what she was getting herself into. This means war. He scanned the table and saw a hot mug in Shane's hands. "You don't need this."

"Hey!"

"You're fifteen that's too young for coffee. You'll thank me one day for this." Alec spoke before leaving the room.

"Fine." Shane said more to herself. "I'll just go take a shower."

"There might not be any hot water." Max warned though she knew for a fact there wasn't since her own shower had been cold to the touch.

"There never is, I'm use to taking cold ones." Shane said before leaving.

"Hmm we'll have to change that." Max said spotting a smile on Ava's face. She was all for getting Alec back on his shower abuse. Now all they needed was a plan.

Max and Alec arrived late to Jam Pony having argued the whole way and also arrived together, Normal noticed this. "Missy Miss what'd I say about corrupting my boy?"

"Not my fault, it's his fault_ I'm_ late." Max curtly explained walking away from her boss. "Damn hot water hog." She mumbled but with his enhanced abilities Alec heard and wouldn't just drop it.

"Coffee thief."

"You were just being lazy you could've made more but instead you went with stealing." Max stopped in her tracks and faced the other X-5 with no plans on dropping the subject either. Even though everyone began to look at them.

Alec shrugged. "Maybe I just like to steal."

Max narrowed her eyes. "I bet you do." She remembered Logan's near empty apartment. "Because you have no morals."

"Nag, nag, nag! Geez Maxie lay off for at least an hour. You're killing me here." Alec said as he headed to his locker.

"Not as much as I'd like to kill you." Max said before spotting OC grinning at her. "What?"

"You got issues Boo, should I expect you back home tonight?"

"What? No. Alec's a pain in the ass, my ass but I'm having a good time with Ava, the arrangement is working when it comes to her. And Shane's great too it's just Alec, he's so---ugh!" Max slammed her locker closed.

"Uh-huh."

"Uh-huh what?" Max questioned as they walked outside together.

"Nothing."

_**IIII**_

Alec rode with Sketchy most of the day. Back at Jam Pony he tried yet again to get Alec to come out with them. But this time Alec considered it.

Ava was doing better at night, Shane didn't mind watching her and if anything she could just call him. With the stress of the last few days he needed a break. "Yeah sure man I'll be there." He promised before heading home.

After dinner Max and Alec spent time with their daughter and even watched a movie together. Once she was asleep they both had plans. "I can't escape you today." Max groaned when she found out they were both headed to Crash.

"You should consider your self to be so lucky."

Max rolled her eyes. "When pigs fly."

"Hey you never know with all these things Manticore whipped up." Were Alec's parting words before he revved up his bike and made his way to Crash.

_**IIII**_

Max was glad to see Logan there after they had left things so tense when she told him about her move. "Hey." She greeted as she joined him at the table.

"Hey, I didn't expect to see you tonight."

Max followed his train of thought. "She's asleep so I thought I'd come out and unwind a little."

"That him?"

Max next followed his stare to the pool tables where Sketchy and Alec played. "Yeah. Shane an X-6 watches Ava when we're at work or out." She explained to clear up any confusion.

Logan nodded. "Your own little transgenic family."

Max began to get upset with his attitude, she had been trying to make peace, "You have nothing to worry about. We're all just trying to look out for Ava and give her some sort of stable while she still has a chance we didn't have. I won't let you turn that into a bad thing."

Logan sighed and ran his hands down his face. "You're right I'm sorry. It's just a lot to adjust to but you're right this is about a little girl that needs you."

Max smiled. "Thank you."

She and Logan had a couple of drinks and talked like they used to; with ease. An hour later Alec appeared at her side. "I think poor Sketch is gonna cry is he losses again. What do you say Maxie, wanna try your luck?"

"Stop calling me Maxie." She was prepared to tell him next to go the hell away but a little idea formed in her head. "Wanna up the stakes?"

Alec grinned. "What do you have in mind?"

"I win and you limit your showers to fifteen minutes and you also have to let everyone else go first. We get dibs before you, for a month."

Alec placed his hand over his heart and exhaled sharply. "You drive a hard bargain. And if I win?"

Max was almost scared to ask. "What do you want?"

"Hmm ok you get dish duty for a month, glasses, bowls, pots, the whole nine." Alec had a few dirty little jokes but noticed Logan sitting there and opted not to cause any problems.

Max rose from the table. "Deal."

-

Isabelle A.


	8. Ends with a plan

_**Chapter 8**_

Alec leaned close to Max as she lined up her next shot. "You wouldn't be cheating would you? By using some enhancements?" he asked with his tone barely a whisper.

Max grinned and kept her eyes on the table. She was very amused by Alec's tactics to throw her off. "Why would you think such a thing?"

Alec chuckled. "Two can play that game."

"Mmm-hmm, back away and let me work my magic." He stood so close she could smell every scent on him from the soap he used this morning to the beer he drank before the game. What stood out the most was the beat of his heart, when the room grew silent it was so clear. It threw her off because she only heard his. She chalked it up to just being a transgenic thing.

Alec stepped away and leaned into his pool stick. As Max moved her arm back to take the shot, he coughed. Max smiled as the ball went in. "So childish." She softly said as she walked past Alec. She lined up her next shot which wasn't an easy one, even for her enhanced abilities.

"Can't win them all." Alec said trying to sound consoling when she missed but a huge smile appeared across his face.

"Don't get so cocky pretty boy, you're not winning this game." Max tightly said. She didn't want to be a sore loser but missing that shot pissed her off.

"Calling me pretty isn't enough for me to let you win, quit sucking up." Alec loudly said to push her buttons when he knew what she had meant, the crowd around them laughed.

"I'm gonna kick your ass." She hissed. She was so tempted to just throw her self across the table and tackle him, how could one person be so annoying and cocky? She hated how sure of himself he always was.

"Empty threats." Alec said in a singsong voice as he made another shot.

"Y'all are a trip to watch." OC said with a laugh as she stood next to Max who just grumbled in response.

Alec focused, that next shot meant the win or another game. As fun as it was to play with someone on his level he needed to win, the satisfaction would be so much fun, he thought as he took the shot. He met Max's brown eyes as the ball rolled along the table, ending up in the pocket making a perfect shot. He grinned so widely his jaw began to hurt. "Enjoy those dishes. I know dishpan hand will look sexy on you."

Max swore she could feel steam coming from her ears. "Rematch."

"Nope, not part of the deal." Alec said as he laid the poll stick on the table. "I won fair and square now you be fair and hold up your end of the bargain."

Max watched as he grabbed his jacket. "Where are you going?" she asked rather then talk about their 'deal' since that conversation would take awhile because she didn't plan to follow through. She knew if the tables were turned he wouldn't either, he loved that damn shower too much.

"Home. I don't like to be gone long." Alec said as he backed away toward the door.

"Wait, I'll go with you." Once he was gone she turned toward Logan who had been sitting at his table the whole night. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"It's still early; sure you don't want to stick around?" Logan was hoping to have another moment alone with her since the night had turned into a petty bet in his opinion.

Max grabbed her jacket and gave him an apologetic expression. "I have to work tomorrow and Ava gets up with the sun. I should get some sleep while I can. I'll call you." she said then left before he could ask her to stay again, she didn't want to see him hurt.

Alec leaned against his bike as she stepped outside. "You guys don't seem very together, no touching, no kiss goodbye." He observed.

Max sighed and decided it was best to tell him incase of an accident rather then ask why he had been watching her and Logan so closely. "I have a retro virus designed to kill him if we get too close. A farewell present from Manticore."

"Manticore sure knows how to screw someone over." Alec said before they sped off.

Max wondered on the drive home what the underlining tones in his voice meant. She knew he had a deep hate for Manticore for everything they did and hiding Ava but she had a feeling there was more to it then that, more to him.

Once back at the apartment Alec locked up and planted himself in front of the TV. Max was heading to her room but stopped when she noticed his plans. "Aren't you gonna go to bed?"

"Sleep is overrated."

"Shoot yourself." Max said as she walked away down the hall. She peaked in Ava's room and found her sound asleep, after she headed to her own room.

Sleep was overrated, she agreed three hours later when she sat up in bed fully awake. She climbed out of bed and decided to go raid the kitchen. As she stepped out from the hall she noticed Alec had never gone to bed but fell asleep on the sofa. "Alec?" she nudged his shoulder.

Alec's hand locked on her wrist causing his eyes to open and meet hers. When reality set back in he let her go. "Sorry."

"No problem." Max flatly said ignoring the throbbing from her wrist. She thought of his eyes when he first woke, they were so dark with emotions. He had covered it up so quickly she wasn't sure if she had seen it or not. But as she watched him get up and head to the kitchen, his body clearly tense she knew something wasn't right. "Are you okay?" she had a strong urge to ask.

"I'm fine, you caught me off guard."

"If you say so." Max said joining him in the kitchen.

"So what has you up?" Alec asked to get the subject off of him and rid some of the tension from the air between them. He knew Max suspected something was wrong but that didn't meant he was going to open up.

"I figured I'd get an early start before _someone_ hogs the bathroom again." He didn't want to be honest so neither was she. Two could play that game, she thought remembering his words.

"If you would've won there wouldn't be a problem." Alec pointed out as he looked at her from across the table they sat.

"You weren't going to keep your end of the deal and neither am I."

"I would've, I'm fair that way. You're just pissed because I'm better."

Max couldn't help but scoff at the fact even at three in the morning he was still a cocky ass. "Prove it, rematch."

"You're starting to sound very desperate Maxie. Are you scared, the dishes aren't that bad." Alec said with a smirk, he was enjoying their tiff about the pool match. It gave him more to push her buttons on, it was just so easy.

"I'm glad you think so since you're doing them." Max stated as she rose from the table and opened the freezer to pull out a tub of ice cream she had been eyeing earlier.

"Breaks deals and steals my ice cream. I don't even let Ava touch my ice cream."

"So take it back." Max taunted before placing the spoonful of cookies and cream in her mouth.

She just didn't know how to give up, Alec smiled at the thought but couldn't make a move before someone else joined them. Ava climbed on her mother's lap. "What are you doing up Peach?" he'd have to leave the payback on Max for later.

"I smelled the ice cream." Ava said before taking the spoon and getting her own bite. "She shares." She said pointing out the fact he didn't.

"That's fine, enjoy my ice cream." Alec said in a surrendering tone but he didn't like the idea of always being out numbered. He stood from the table. "I'm gonna go take a shower."

"No!" Max and Ava yelled in unison as they jumped from the chair and ran to the bathroom. But they were too late, Alec locked himself in. "That's not fair, open up." Max said banging on the door.

"Hmm…no thank you." Alec called out from inside as the sounds of the shower could be heard. "Ah so warm, feels so good." he said, his voice taunting with humor and satisfaction.

"Ass." Max hissed and then heard Ava laugh beside her. "Don't use that word, it's bad. Now we have to finish the ice cream, all of it. And come up with as plan for payback." She explained as she walked side by side back to the kitchen.

"Yeah." Ava agreed but with a plan of her own in mind.

-

Isabelle A.


End file.
